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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26462956">Potions, bombs, and Fishing</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArthurtheGatekeeper/pseuds/ArthurtheGatekeeper'>ArthurtheGatekeeper</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Wiedźmin | The Witcher (Video Game), Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Aiden's fine what are you talking about, Derogatory Language, Happy Ending, Injury, M/M, Swearing, allusions to the massacre of Wolf witchers by the cats, in the since of curse word nicknames, it's lambert what did you expect there</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 08:02:21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,473</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26462956</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArthurtheGatekeeper/pseuds/ArthurtheGatekeeper</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The first time Aiden uses one of Lamberts potions he nearly keels over from how terrible they are. Aiden teaches him a better way. Aiden fishes with a rod. Lambert shows him a better way.</p><p>They teach each other better ways. And in the end they both get what they want.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Aiden/Lambert (The Witcher)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>32</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>158</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Potions, bombs, and Fishing</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Damnit Lambert!” He coughed violently. Rolling over to curl in on himself. “Why didn’t you warn me you had a bad batch of tawny owl?”</p><p>He wrapped the cut on his leg. Scrapping guts off his armor. “What are you on about. It was fine.” He wanted to roll up into a ball too but the cramping was only going to get worse and they still had to get a trophy off the damn thing.</p><p>“This,” Aiden groaned pathetically. “Is not fine.</p><p>“This is what fucking tawny owl does Aiden!” The pain making him snappish. “It helps and then it wears off and you want to claw out your guts. That’s how it fucking works cause this life is a goddamn nightmare!” He stabbed between the vertebrae hard and severed its head quickly.</p><p>“Fuck what?” Aiden rolled over. Sounding extra pathetic about it which just pissed him off more honestly. “Who taught you how to make potions Lambert? Cause I need to stab them.”</p><p> He spun on him. Knife to his throat. “Don’t ever fucking threaten them <i>Cat</i>.”</p><p>Aiden watched him. His slow heart beating faster than Aiden’s. The stench of the corpse filling their noses. The potion curdling their guts. “Sorry.”</p><p>He hated that. How earnestly he apologized. He sat back against a rock. Stared at the things leathery skin. “Vesemir taught us.” Aiden waited. Or maybe he just couldn’t think of a response over the pain. “He was a fencing instructor. He taught us what he remembered but. It’d been a long time since he learned.”</p><p>“Lambert?” He groaned. “If this is what all your potions are like then destroying that bag would be an act of love for you and self-defense on my part.”</p><p>“They’re not. All this bad.” He defended but honestly some of them were far worse. “Swallow’s decent.”</p><p>“Lambert?” He grunted. “You’re a great fighter. But we are never using your potions again.”</p><p> </p><p>He took a sip of the freshly made Petri’s Philter. To test it out. He’d made it like Aiden had shown him but it was the first time he’d done it himself.</p><p>“You cheater! Taking a potion before we spar!” Eskel cuffed him.</p><p>“I was checking if it came out right.” An idea popped into his head. “You can use one too. Petri’s Philter. See whose works better.”</p><p>“Not a fair comparison.” Geralt pointed out. “Eskels better at signs than the rest of us.”</p><p>“What are you scared?”</p><p>Eskel eyed him unimpressed but went to grab his. Took a swig. “How do we want to do this?”</p><p>“Who can toss Geralt the furthest?” He suggested ruefully.</p><p>Geralt’s protests when unheard as Eskel launched him into the base of a snowbank with Aard.</p><p>He glared at them. Covered in snow.</p><p>“Come on Geralt! It doesn’t count if we use a different person the second time.”</p><p>“I’m going to throw both you in the river.”</p><p>“Just the loser.” Eskel argued.</p><p>“Then I don’t get to throw you in.” He grumbled crossing the courtyard to them.</p><p>“Nah I’m willing to take that bet.” They both looked at him like he was being daft.</p><p>He adjusted his glove. Don’t fail me now Aiden. Launched Geralt into the air.</p><p>He landed with an oft and a puff of white snow. Halfway up the snowbank.</p><p>He grinned as they sputtered.</p><p>“Guess it works.”</p><p> </p><p>“How’d you learn this Lambert?” Vesemir asked as he copied down the last recipe Aiden had had the chance to teach him.</p><p>“Found a cache with the information.” The cache was another witcher but he wasn’t going to tell them that.</p><p>“Right.” He felt Vesemir watching him. Not believing him.</p><p>He dug his heels in. He didn’t owe the old man answers. Didn’t breathe a word as a cold wind whipped through the giant hole in the wall. He wondered if the Cats had caused that one. He didn’t ask but he wondered.</p><p> </p><p>“Aiden what did you use in this necrophage oil?” He sniffed the vial walking over to him.</p><p>He perked up from his disappointment over how many less necrophages he’d killed to tell him.</p><p>He laughed full bodied and loud. Aiden wasn’t smiling when he finally managed to stop, wiping a tear from his eye.</p><p>“I thought you were just shit at fighting but that’s garbage. What’s it supposed to do? Make them itchy? Impotent? Hurt their feelings?”</p><p>“Well how do you make them then?”</p><p>Next spring he wondered how many Cats were using Vesemir’s recipes.</p><p> </p><p>“Damnit.” He cursed. Shoving the broken arm piece back together. Trying to sow the gash closed.</p><p>Aiden watched him from across the fire. Lazily rotating the fish they’d bombed from the water. “You really need to just replace that mutt.”</p><p>“Fuck off pussy I don’t have the diagrams on me and were nowhere near anyone who knows how to make it.”</p><p>“Well no one’s going to be able to figure out what it was supposed to look like from that.”</p><p>He stared at the mangled and ruined armor in his hands. His fingers dug in and the thread he’d used on it snapped. It fell back apart.</p><p>He tossed it away with a frustrated scream and ran. Ran until his lungs burned and his feet ached and the exhaustion finally over powered the anger.</p><p>Aiden was asleep in his bedroll. His fish still waiting for him- although they had long gone cold. He chewed the small bones not bothering to pick them out.</p><p>A small set of papers sat rolled next to it.</p><p>He unrolled it.</p><p>Kicked Aiden.</p><p>“I can’t fucking wear this!” He shoved the diagram back to him.</p><p>“It’d be just until you could get new armor. You can’t work in a shirt and pants.”</p><p>“Cause Cat armor is a huge step up from that!”</p><p>Aiden scowled at him. “Oh cause people thinking for half a second you might be a Cat is worth dying over. Just show off your medallion and bark at them. I’m sure they’ll figure it out.”</p><p>“You’re fucking right it is!” He grabbed his medallion and bared his teeth. “I’m not a Cat.”</p><p>They had murdered his school. Killed so many. Destroyed the closest thing he had to a home. It was a shitty home and he hated it. Some days he wished they’d finished the job. Some days he was glad he had a home at all.</p><p>Aiden face shuttered closed. “Well we can’t all be Wolves Lambert.”</p><p>In the morning he was long gone. The diagrams laying in the morning dew.</p><p>He picked them up.</p><p>However upset they’d be at him for wearing them wouldn’t match how upset they’d be if he didn’t come home. Probably.</p><p>He found a leatherworker and had a set made.</p><p> </p><p>“What are you wearing?” Eskel blocked his entry. “I almost shot you Lambert.”</p><p>“Glad you didn’t.” He shoved him out of the way. “I’m tired. Piss off.”</p><p>He grabbed him. “If Vesemir sees you wearing that-“</p><p>“It was this or go without armor so Fuck Off Eskel.”</p><p>Eskel studied him. Let go. “Let me warn the others at least. You know that,” He motioned to the armor. “Is going to bring back bad memories.”</p><p>“Would you preferred I died out there?”</p><p>He raised his hands placating. “Didn’t say that. Happy you’re home.”</p><p>“Yeah well that makes one of us.”</p><p> </p><p>No one asked about the armor. They left a set of wolf armor diagrams for him outside his door and he spent the winter in clothing and furs.</p><p>No one asked why he had cat armor. He didn’t offer to explain. He wouldn’t have answered if they did. Would have made it very clear it wasn’t a topic for discussion.</p><p>But no one asked.</p><p>He sat in his room and stared at it. It looked so similar to Aiden’s. Which of course it did.</p><p>
  <i>We can’t all be wolves Lambert.</i>
</p><p>No. But why you have to be a cat? Anything else would have been fine.</p><p> </p><p>He gasped short and quick and barely breathing at all. His eyes losing focus. Pinned to the tree by the dead monster’s antlers.</p><p>What a shitty way to go.</p><p>“Wooh. Glad I came. Thought I smelled wet dog.”</p><p>He raised his head. Vision spinning as he did.</p><p>A cat. His cat. Aiden.</p><p>The world went dark.</p><p>“Look who returns!” The fire popped as he opened his eyes. “Holding up alright?”</p><p>“Love questions like that.” He whispered as Aiden lifted his head and raised a potion to his lips. “Holding up? Holding up what? My dick?”</p><p>“Well you certainly are one so I wouldn’t put it past you.” The vial moved away. His head was lowered onto Aiden’s thigh.</p><p>“This is shit and you know it.”</p><p>“Yeah. It is.” Aiden craned his neck upward at the stars. “I was really looking forward to yelling at you.”</p><p>“Do it you pussy.”</p><p>“It’s no fun if your injured bitch.”</p><p>“What think I can’t take it?”</p><p>“Take what? My dick?” He chewed something loudly. “Come on. Even a lone hunter can use a helping hand some time.”</p><p>“Don’t quote Vesemir at me you prick.”</p><p>“Oh I’m a prick now? What an upgrade.” A different flask came back and he drank greedily. “And I wasn’t. Guxart said that.”</p><p>“Sounds like a dick.”</p><p>“No. I like dicks Lambert. He was pussy.”</p><p>He chuckled. Which hurt. It pulled at his wounds.</p><p>“Did you know it was me?”</p><p>“Knew it was a wolf.” He dropped some of the jerky on his chest. He nibbled on it. “Hoped it was you.”</p><p>“Would you have helped? If it wasn’t.”</p><p>He was quiet while he considered. If he weren’t so tired it would piss him off. “Yeah. I would have.” He believed him. Because it was Aiden. “Glad it was you though.”</p><p>“Why?”</p><p>“Cause I missed my mangy mutt. Who else is going to teach me how to fish with bombs?”</p><p>“I started building a boat. So I could do it on the lake.” He was starting to feel hazy. Aiden’s potions sometimes had painkillers going for them. Which was nice. “At Kaer Morhen.”</p><p>“Bet it’s going to leak like a drunkard.”</p><p>“Yeah. Bet it will.” He thought of the lake and keep. “I hate that place.”</p><p>“Can’t say I understand why you go back.”</p><p>“Why do you go back?”</p><p>“Go back where? At best the cats have a traveling caravan of misery these days. I don’t visit.”</p><p>“What? But winter sucks.”</p><p>“Not going to argue with that.”</p><p>He had a brilliant idea. “Come home with me. We can sink my boat together.”</p><p>Aiden looked down at him. So sadly. He reached up for him in confusion.</p><p>“They’re assholes but the keeps pretty big so we can just avoid them. We can sleep in my room. I’ve got a lot of nice furs. It’s pretty. Please?”</p><p>“Sure Lambert. Sure.” He cupped the hand that had found his cheek. Kissed it. “Don’t worry. I won’t hold that against you in the morning.”</p><p>“If you were there maybe I could breathe. Cause.” It was really hard to keep his eyes open. His hand was heavy in Aiden’s. “The one good thing this life gave me. Was there.”</p><p>“Love you Lambert. Love you too.”</p><p>“I asked you to come with me.” He said weeks later.</p><p>“I surprised you remember. You were pretty loopy at that point. Do you remember explaining why pigeons were the best bird too? Cause that was pretty funny.”</p><p>“You’re lying.”</p><p>“You wish I was.”</p><p>He scowled at him. “I don’t remember your answer.”</p><p>“I said I wouldn’t hold you to it in the morning obviously. I’m not stupid.”</p><p>“Oh.” The horses crunched gravel as they continued on. “I did mean it. I want you to come.”</p><p>Aiden kept his eyes ahead. “We both know that doesn’t matter.”</p><p>“What’s that supposed to mean?” His horse picked up speed at his unintentional request. He tugged him in front of Aiden’s, halting him. “What I want doesn’t matter?”</p><p>“When has what we wanted ever mattered Lambert?” He flinched. Eyes stuck on Aiden’s reins.  “It was very sweet of you. But the other wolves would kill me for being in twenty miles of Kaer Morhen and we both know it.”</p><p>He couldn’t look away from his dark scarred hands. “Why’d you have to be a cat?”</p><p>“Why’d you have to be a wolf?” He moved his horse so they were side by side. Took his hand. “We get three out of four seasons together. That’s pretty damn good.”</p><p>“I want more. I want more than this life.”</p><p>“Hey. Maybe if you build good enough boats we can.” His hand squeezed. “We could be the first. Retire on some big lake and fish with bombs.”</p><p>“With a little house infested with mice because we can’t convince any cats to come within ten feet of us?” He stared into his golden eyes and for the first time could understand why people called them beautiful.</p><p>“With a tiny little house with a leaking roof that you always curse at.”</p><p>“We’re never going to get that are we?” He didn’t comment on the tears in Aidens eyes or the blur in his own.</p><p>“No.” Aiden squeezed his hand. “But it’s a nice dream isn’t it?”</p><p>“It’s awful. Why did you make the roof leak?”</p><p>“Why did you fill it with mice?”</p><p>“Cause I want it to be real.”</p><p>“So do I.”</p><p>They clicked their horses forward. Not letting go.</p><p>“So this house. Smells like rat shit huh?”</p><p>“Yeah. And our clothing gets all mildewy cause we just throw it in the lake to wash it and forget to hang it up.”</p><p>“Ugh. I hate that.”</p><p>“Yeah it’s awful.”</p><p>“But it’s ours?”</p><p>“It’s ours.”</p><p>“I had a friend. Aiden was his name.”</p><p>“Gonna retire to your vineyard wolf?”</p><p>“I might.”</p><p>“Good for you. Make sure Dandelion writes a song about your beer gut.”</p><p>“Lambert-“</p><p>“Pardon my interruption gentlemen.” Majordomo stepped into the room. “A gentleman just arrived looking for Master Lambert. It seems urgent.”</p><p>“Lambert?” Geralt shot him a confused look.</p><p>“Hey don’t look at me! I don’t know!”</p><p>“Let’s go met your guest.”</p><p>They pushed the door open and he looked to the left. Geralt to the right.</p><p>“Who are you?” Geralt asked. He turned to the newcomer.</p><p>He exhaled. “Aiden.” When he inhaled it was like coming up for air for the first time in months.</p><p>Scarred. Hair long. Covering one eye.</p><p>Alive.</p><p>“Hey Lambert. Been a while.”</p><p>“You fucking heartless asshole!” He yelled as he lifted him off the ground in a crushing embrace. “How fucking dare you.”</p><p>“Missed you too bitch.” As he attempted to break his ribs with the force of his hug. “Nice place you got here.”</p><p>“It’s Geralt’s and it sucks.”</p><p>“Yeah.” He mumbled into his ear. Not letting go. “Our place is gonna be way nicer.”</p><p>“With rat shit and everything.”</p><p>“Yeah.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>First time writing for what is probably my favorite ship in the series. Too bad we didn't get to see more of Aiden Who is perfectly fine and didn't die. They go and retire on a big lake with a tiny shack of a house and everythings fine and nothing hurts. Obviously.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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